Alonso optimistic he can close gap on Vettel

He says “until we are 75 or 80 points behind, we should be optimistic” about challenging for the Formula One title.

The two-time champion trails Vettel by 30 points after just four races going into this weekend’s event. But the Spaniard feels for the first time in years that Ferrari has a car good enough to dictate the race to Red Bull, rather than waiting for opportunities.

Alonso is fourth overall after a win in China and a second in Australia. He says “it’s a weekend we approach with a positive mentality and not a defensive mentality (like) the first three years with Ferrari.”

After a frustrating start to the season, Fernando Alonso retains high hopes of clawing back his 30-point gap on Formula One championship leader Sebastian Vettel starting at this week’s Spanish Grand Prix.

The two-time world champion has drifted down to fourth place after four races. But the Spaniard feels that for the first time in years Ferrari has a car good enough to dictate the race to Red Bull, rather than waiting for opportunities and slip-ups from his main rival.

“Yes, maybe, yes, it’s the first time we’ve arrived (here) with a competitive car. In the first four races we felt competitive, we felt that we were ready to fight for the top places if the race was without problems,” Alonso said on Thursday. “It’s a weekend we approach with a positive mentality and not a defensive mentality.”

Alonso’s position would doubtless be higher with a little more consistency and less bad luck.

The Spaniard started the Malaysian GP in a strong position _ third on the grid _ but damaged his front wing when he bumped into Vettel’s car and crashed out a lap later when his wing shattered. In Bahrain, he again started from third, but problems with the DRS system forced him to pit twice in the first eight laps and he could only fight back to eighth spot.

Those setbacks have not dented his confidence, however, because he knows the car has more speed than last year _ when he only lost the championship to Vettel by three points.

“Last year we were 1.5 seconds behind the top cars and we won by the weather, and by the luck,” the 31-year-old said. “We’ve been second in Australia and we won in China, so it’s a very different feeling and a very different package that we have this year. We need to do some consistent points now for the next Sundays. But we are more optimistic.”

Vettel’s lead may seem impressive, but Alonso was much further ahead last year and still lost to the German. Alonso thinks that gives him reason to believe that he can do likewise.

“Sebastian last year was 43 points behind us after the summer break and arrived leading in Austin, in Texas. So in five or six races you can recover 45-50 points,” Alonso said. “Same with us (Renault) in 2006. I was 33 points in front of Michael (Schumacher), which means 75 or 80 points with the current points system and he was leading the championship in Suzuka (Japan), two races from the end. Until we are 75 or 80 points behind we should be optimistic.”

Although the Circuit de Catalunya is tough to overtake on, Alonso says Ferrari has not made pole position a priority _ despite the fact he hasn’t qualified higher than third this season, whereas Vettel started the first two races from the pole.

“The race pace this year and the tires are faster than in previous years. … (You have to) try to find the right balance between qualifying and the race,” he said. “Maybe the first really important qualifying will arrive in two weeks’ time in Monaco when we know that qualifying is extremely important. Here it’s more or less a normal circuit and we need to find a compromise.”